Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Lumbar Spine

To the Editor: Jensen et al. (July 14 issue) 1 found that 64 percent of a group of 98 people without back pain had lumbar-spine disk abnormalities (bulges, protrusions, or extrusions). This result may be a substantial overestimate. How did the authors ensure that their study participants were truly free of symptoms? Participants were recruited from a particular hospital; presumably they were patients or employees and were likely to have a greater awareness of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) than people in general. Given the high cost of MRI, it is conceivable that a substantial number of people with a history of . . .